Chapter 23

"Bringing a man in is quite harsh, I think."

Upon entering Sora's room, Lazette said this right away. Although they had managed to escape the clutches of the Geist thanks to Sora's dishonorable words, she still couldn't accept it.

Sora was casually flipping through a holy book he had brought from the study.

"What was that behavior just now? You acted like a completely undisciplined child."

"It couldn't be helped. It seemed more efficient to act that way."

The people in the mansion were already used to Sora's age-inappropriate behavior, but outsiders were different. If Sora had interacted with them normally, it would have only caused confusion. After all, there was not a trace of childishness in his true self. Lazette, though pouting, had to admit that Sora, sitting majestically on the chair with his legs crossed, was a sight to behold.

"Still, the village's location has been exposed. ...It feels suspicious."

"Rather, I think it's more surprising that we managed to hide it for a year. It's not certain that the beast person Sania was cautious enough to avoid being tracked."

Lazette offered her opinion to Sora, who had a troubled look on his face. However, Sora's expression didn't improve.

"As Lazette says, it's more likely that our location was identified earlier. That's why I'm concerned. Why was it discovered now, when the Ogarite production facility has been established?"

Sora, with a troubled look, gazed at the ceiling and voiced his unpleasant thoughts.

"To put it bluntly, I think there might be an 'informant'."

If there was someone providing information to the church, it would make sense that they waited until the stable production of Ogarite was possible. At the same time, if the church had knowledge of the communication methods and escape routes that Sora had instructed the village to use in case of discovery—

"There's nothing we can do...," Lazette muttered.

Most importantly, Lazette was the key to the communication method, and the church had taken measures to prevent it. The evidence was piling up.

"But you won't abandon them, right?"

When Lazette asked, Sora nodded.

"Of course not. Human resources are invaluable assets. At this point, even if we have to give up the Ogarite sales rights, we must ensure the safety of the children."

The children who knew the production method of Ogarite would be a hindrance to the church's sale of Ogarite. While the Kleinzelt family has exclusive sales rights within their territory, it's different in other territories. The exclusive sales status is a result of being the only supplier of Ogarite, but there is a possibility of competitors appearing. If the children taught the production method to a merchant guild in another territory, the church's exclusive sales system would collapse. For the church, securing the children is essential. Sora wants to avoid the children being in danger, but without a means of communication, he can only pray for their safety. What he can do is think about and prepare for how to protect the children who have escaped.

"Right, the evacuation site in case of an attack by the lord's army is the hunter's hut on the outskirts of town, isn't it?"

"Yes. It's also the hut where we stored Ogarite last year, so the children should remember it."

When Sora confirmed, Lazette added. If there was an informant, the church would also know about it. Without a way to communicate, changing the evacuation site was not possible. Therefore, it was necessary to bring the children from the evacuation site to the lord's mansion skillfully.

"Even if we bring them to the lord's mansion, won't Lord hand them over to the church?"

In response to Lazette's question, Sora held up three fingers.

"Bringing them back to the village is possible, but handing them over is not. There are three reasons for this. One is that the Kleinzelt family doesn't want the church to know the production method."

The Kleinzelt family produces and sets the price, and the church buys and distributes it to the market. This is the cooperative relationship between the church and the lord. If the church knew the production method, they could complain about the price set by the lord and produce it themselves. This would inevitably worsen the relationship with the Kleinzelt family. Conversely, it means that the church doesn't intend to make the Kleinzelt family an enemy. If they wanted to, they would have negotiated individually with the village or with Lazette, whom they might have mistaken for the ringleader.

"Another reason is that the children are my playmates."

The lord avoids upsetting Sora. However, the children are former vagrants and might be considered unsuitable as playmates for Sora. Beast people like Sania are not favored by the nobility, so this is even more likely. Sora has considered what benefits he can offer the lord in case of an emergency.

"The last reason is that the villagers are the lord's property."

The lord silenced Geist, who had offered to manage the village. A greedy lord would never hand over the villagers for free.

"Considering these reasons, I don't think the lord will hand them over to the church. If he does, there will be a negotiation period. In other words, we need to create a reason for the church to give up or overlook the children."

"I understand the logic. How are we going to fabricate that reason?"

Lazette leaned forward, but Sora scratched his cheek, stopping her. In fact, he hadn't thought that far yet. He had decided on the direction but couldn't come up with specific measures. He had been reading church-related books, hoping to find some inspiration. Last time, he had only looked for descriptions of magic, so he had skipped over many parts. This world's doctrines and myths were mostly new to him.

– Looking at it this way, the differences from Earth are significant.

The religion in Sora's previous life emphasized love and etiquette, calling for people to avoid conflict and help each other. The church in this world, however, preaches about restoring the world altered by mages to its original state, with the realization of the mythological world as its fundamental principle, and criticizes mages who go against this.

"Mages, huh..."

"What about mages?"

Lazette tilted her head, picking up on Sora's mutter.

"Can you use magic, Lazette?"

"Of course not. What about you, Sora?"

"I can't."

He added silently, "I wish I could." Sora glanced at the pile of toys. He had studied, but without a magic book, it was impossible to master magic.

"You seem like you could use it quickly, though."

"You should reconsider your perception of me. Anyway, if Lazette can't use magic, it's not a problem."

Sora folded his arms, seemingly having an idea.

"If there were a mage among us, what would Geist do?"

"He would capture or kill them, I think. It depends on the lord, as you are the heir to the baron's family."

Lazette pondered and spoke. Her guess, based on her understanding of the power dynamics between the lord and the church, was quite accurate.

"But there are no mages. What are you planning?"

Sora stopped tidying up the books and shifted his gaze to the church in the distance.

"Hit them where they want to hit."

It usually takes three to four days for children to walk from the town to the village. Considering that the lord's army would travel by horse, it would be reasonable to expect the escaped children to arrive in six days.

"We don't have much time. Lazette, prepare some bottles."

If the only thing he could do was pray for the children's safety and prepare, he had a duty to do it thoroughly. As he thought this, Sora glared at the church's gold decorations.